It's Not Easy Being Green- or is it?

You might think it's pretty tough being green, worrying about our carbon footprints and our emmissions and energy efficiency, but there are many ways to be green and it's easy! The basics we teach is 1. Reduce; 2. Reuse; and 3. Recycle.

1. Reduce
Think to yourself- 'Do I really need this?' or 'Is there a similar product with less packaging?' or 'Do I have something like this already that I could use again?'
Reduce your water consumption easily by using your dishwasher (is this not way easier than handwashing??) Dishwashers, even the inefficient ones, use about 65 litres of water, while washing your dishes by hand with running water can use up to 135 litres! Even better, an efficient dishwasher uses as little as 13 litres. That sounds easier than doing it myself for sure. It's not so hard being green after all.

2. Reuse
It might be out of style in your mind, but bring your old clothes to the thift store. As the saying goes- one person's junk could another person's treasure! Or if it really is out of style or worn out, some companies have been reusing the worn out clothing to make new clothing. (Think Patagonia, Mountain Equipment Coop, even Nike) And of course, my favorite example, re-useable bags. Why wouldn't you?

3. Recycle
You do know you get money back for recycling your beer bottles? Now, while you don't get money back for everything that is recyclable, wouldn't saving the world one piece of paper at a time be worth your while? What is recyclable? More than you might think! Appliances, batteries, metal, oil, paint, plastic, rubber, paper are only some of the recyclable products out there. Did you know that when you buy a TV, you are also paying for the responsible disposal of it, for when down the road when you want a more efficient TV? You could be paying as much as $45/ per TV so that it can be dismantled, recycled and disposed of ethically. Why wouldn't you take advantage of a service you have already paid for? Remember, while not everything is recyclable, things should be disposed of responsibly. For questions on what is recyclable and where to recyle or to dispose of hazardous materials, check out the Recycling Council of British Columbia to make it really easy! http://rcbc.bc.ca/recyclepedia

Hey Kermit, being green is actually pretty easy.